Vengeance-class destroyer
''Hope''-class destroyer |class after=''Warrior''-class destroyer ''Vanguard''-class destroyer |subclasses= |built=2543- 2550; 2553- 2572 |length=581.4m |width= |height= |mass=861,150 metric tons |speed= |acceleration= |engine=three linked |slipspace drive= |shield gen=none |hull=*RADAR absorbant, plasma-refractive coating *1800mm titanium/ceramic armour plating *plasma-resistant anti-spall carbon nanofibre backing |sensor= |target= |navigation= |avionics= |countermeasures=3 × AN/SLE-311 decoy launcher (after 2561) |armament=*2 × *2100 × RSGM-16 Archer (70 pods) *48 × BSGM-14 Harpoon (24 tubes) *210 × RIM-109A Medusa (210 cells) *3 × RSM-19 Shiva (1 tube) *20 × dual 4.1 inch Mark 22 naval gun turrets *45 × quad 50mm mark VI naval gun turrets |complement= *6 × FQ-99B Dart *3 × RQ-117 Clarion *4 × D-77 Pelicans *30 × Mark 4 lifeboat |crew=*292 naval personnel (37 officers, 355 enlisted) *20 flight technicians and flight crew |capacity= |consumables= |othersystems= |era=Human-Covenant War |role=*escort and protection of larger vessels *extended patrol and rapid response duties *direct combat with hostile vessels |inservice=2543- 2626 |affiliation=United Nations Space Command Navy }} The Vengeance-class destroyer was a class of guided missile destroyers that served in the UNSC Navy from 2544 onwards. The Vengeance-class was designed to replace or supplement several classes of destroyers already in UNSC service, most of which were both worn out from exhaustive service and outdated in design. The class incorporated many lessons hard learned by the UNSC during the Human-Covenant War, in which warships thoroughly outmatched Humanity's finest vessels at every encounter. Innovative design features included three full sized fusion reactors, extensive automation to reduce crew requirements, redesigned magnetic accelerator cannons and a significantly expanded armament. The Vengeance-class's design also incorporated some of the more cost-effective 'stealth' measures incorporated by the highly successful , including a reduced RADAR cross-section and low-observable reactor exhaust. The class was an attempt to design, as far as was possible, a UNSC ship class that could engage the Covenant on more favourable terms. Although built in small numbers, the success of these design features heavily influenced the subsequent refit of vessels such as . Twenty five examples of the class were built, of which nine remained active following the Battle of Earth. Production was restarted in 2553, following which it gradually replaced all existing destroyer classes during the Remnant War. At the time of their introduction, the Vengeance-class was the most advanced space combatant in UNSC service, and provided the backbone of the UNSC Navy's strength during the Remnant War. The class itself was finally retired during the postwar period, but its influential design proved the basis for subsequent designs, such as the ''Warrior''-class destroyer. History Design and building The Vengeance-class destroyer was designed to address the chronic problem of age amongst serving UNSC destroyers. The UNSC Navy operated a large number of outdated destroyers, the majority of which were worn-out after longer and harder service lives than they were designed for. The Navy's surviving destroyers were worn out after seeing hard use without any significant refit, and only hasty, ad-hoc repair. The Vengeance-class destroyer would supplement or replace existing destroyers wherever possible, reducing the UNSC's maintenance requirements and increasing the fleet's effectiveness in combat against the Covenant. It was envisaged that the Vengeance-class would replace the large number of destroyers or heavy frigates in service, including the ''Halberd''-class destroyer, , and . Replacing a large number of elderly classes would both reduce logistical and technical burden on the UNSC and potentially reduce hull losses to enemy action. It soon became apparent that the expense of completely replacing the Navy's fleet of destroyers, even staggered over more than a decade, posed too large a challenge both economically and practically for the UNSC. Instead a far smaller number of new Vengeance-class destroyers would be produced to supplement continued production of the cheaper and more numerous Pioneer-class destroyer. The Vengeance-class would provide the UNSC Navy with a high capability space combatant, while the Pioneer-class would provide the bulk of the Navy's destroyer strength. Wherever possible, elderly destroyers would be decommissioned and scrapped as newly built vessels became available. In reality, diminishing shipyard capacity as inner colonies were lost, coupled with unsustainable hull losses in combat against the Covenant, meant that older destroyers were kept in service until they were physically unable to be maintained. Production of the Vengeance-class took place above Barrow between 2540 and 2550, with the first example of the class, UNSC Vengeance, being commissioned on May 16, 2544. Far from the originally planned 190 vessels, the funding and shipyard space allocated allowed for just 25 over ten years to be constructed. The second, crucial reason for a newly designed, newly built destroyer class was the overwhelming superiority of Covenant Navy warships compared to their UNSC counterparts. Human-Covenant War Post-war service Post-war, as the UNSC stretched its severely diminished resources between rebuilding its empire and and rebuilding the shattered Defence Force, operable destroyers were kept in service until they were physically unable to be, and ships eventually decommissioned would be cannabalised for parts to keep others running. Production of the Vengeance-class had ceased in 2550, and post-war only nine examples of the class remained in service. Production of the Vengeance-class was restarted in 2553, following which it gradually replaced all existing classes in service as these were retired. The Vengeance-class saw a series of incremental upgrades throughout the remainder of the 26th century, the latter of these, like the Remembrance-class frigate's 2561 refit, featuring Sangheili, Theran and Forerunner-derived technology. The class served with distinction through the postwar period, though towards the beginning of the 27th century was in need of either significant refit or replacement. It was not until 2589, amid ongoing defence spending reductions, that the UNSC began funding development of a new class of destroyer to be designed to replace the elderly Vengeance-class. The class itself was extensively refit from 2594, as the oldest examples of the class were approaching forty years' service. This extended the Vengeance-class destroyer's service an additional twenty years, and staved off the issue of a capability gap, as its replacement, the ''Warrior''-class, was not scheduled to enter service until the mid-2610s. The Vengeance-class was gradually retired, beginning with the oldest ships, from 2612 onwards, as the new Warrior-class destroyer took its place. The last Vengeance-class, UNSC Victory, was decommissioned in August 2622. Design features Armament Known ships of the line Category:Destroyer classes Category:UNSC Category:UNSC Ship Classes